My Big Bro, Now My Little Bro
by Kurotensaki13
Summary: As far as the world was informed correctly, Ace was dead. So when Luffy comes across a 10 year old Ace with no memories of his past, Luffy is ready not to let his second chance go. Meaning he'll do anything as a big brother to hide Ace from the eyes of the world.
1. Little Brother Ace

My Big Bro, Now My Little Bro

**My first One Piece fic!**

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><p><span>1. Little Brother Ace<span>

"Come on, Luffy! You've got to keep eating!" Jinbei encouraged. He had his goal set on what he should do after the loss of Ace. And currently, it was to keep Luffy going. The strawhat had to get over the shock of losing his brother before his eyes. And it wasn't going to be easy. Luffy, somehow, was managing to eat more than he did in the past few days. It was good news.

_Perhaps he might be getting over this faster than I would have expected._

Jinbei clicked back to reality when Luffy finished eating and stood up.

"Where are you going, Luffy?" he asked.

"Just somewhere. I'll be back soon."

Jinbei stared at Luffy's retreating back.

_Or maybe not._

No, it definitely wasn't going to be easy to bring back Luffy to his original self, and it was also going to take time.

Luffy walked along the edge of the island. His thoughts were all on Ace. No matter how much he tried not to think of his brother, images and memories would come back again, getting clearer and clearer every time.

"Ace…Why…Why did you have to-"

BANG!

Luffy's words were cutoff when a huge crashing sound rang through the island. He stopped dead in his tracks. The location of the crash wasn't very far. Luffy looked into the jungle. There was this little feeling he couldn't describe. He felt like, he just had to go and see what it was. Luffy started sprinting towards the sound. Excitement and hope surged through him as he got closer.

_I wonder why?_

As he was nearing closer, he heard a cry of a beast soon followed by a child's war cry. Panic went through Luffy. A child was in danger! He sped up. Soon after, he saw a little boy clinging on to a gigantic crocodile's back. The crocodile was snapping furiously at the boy.

Luffy flew into the air, then pulled down a crushing kick into the crocodile's head. He landed softly on the ground and stared up at the boy, who was still clinging onto the knocked out crocodile.

"Hey, it's alright to let go now!" Luffy called out.

However, instead of a thank you, he faced a kick on the face. The force made Luffy fell backwards.

"Ow, ow, ow!" he rubbed his face.

"I could have done that myself," said the boy standing over him.

Luffy froze. He couldn't breathe. The boy's voice was familiar. _Too_ familiar. He slowly sat up and managed to look at the boy clearly. That moment, Luffy's heart and time stopped.

"A…Ace…?"

It was his supposedly dead brother. With his freckles and everything. Luffy was eye to eye with a 10 year old Ace. The freckled boy frowned.

"Who are you? How do you know my name?" he demanded.

Tears started flowing out of Luffy's wide eyes.

"…Ace…Ace…!" He reached out for the boy.

"Damn it! Answer me! Who are you and how do you know my name?" Ace got into fighting stance, making Luffy stop. He couldn't believe it. He was certain the boy was Ace, but something was a bit off. Uncertainty crawled in.

"Ace? You…You don't recognize me? It's me! Luffy! Your brother!"

"I've never even seen you before! Besides, I don't have any siblings!"

Luffy couldn't stop crying. "You really… don't… remember me? Then what about Sabo? Grandpa? Dadan?" Luffy desperately said out names from his childhood. To Luffy's dismay, the young 10 year old Ace only replied no,

Before he could say anything else, footsteps echoed from behind him.

"Luffy! Are you okay?" It was Jinbei.

Ace scowled even more hearing the deep voice.

_Damn it. Someone else's here._

However, when he saw Jinbei, Ace couldn't help but open his mouth wide.

_What is that thing?_

"Oi! You! What are you?" shouted Ace, ready to fight the enormous Fishman.

Jinbei, on the other hand, imagined if he had hurt his head or something. Despite usually being calm, he couldn't think straight looking at a child Ace.

"Ace?" he asked.

Now this time, Ace started having suspicions. What was with all these people calling his name? It was as if they knew him for a long time.

"Who are you and how do you know my name?" he repeated the same question once more.

Jinbei was quicker at coming back from his hiatus state. Many thoughts went through his head and ended up with two conclusions. One, this young Ace had no memories of his past. Two, he should be hidden from the world, especially the Marines.

_Questions can be asked later_, he thought.

Jinbei cleared his throat.

"My name is Jinbei. I am a Fishman."

Ace looked startled.

_Fishman? _

But he wasn't going to admit he was an ignorant kid in front of strangers.

"Do you know me?" he asked.

Jinbei stood silent for a while, keeping Ace locked in his gaze. Ace kept his stance and waited patiently.

"No. I don't," was his final answer.

Luffy whipped around in anger.

"Jinbei! What are you saying? Don't you recognize him? He's Ace!"

"Luffy. Your brother Ace is dead.'

Luffy snapped.

"He's right before my eyes!" he growled.

"That's enough, Luffy! No one can save the dead! He is _not_ Ace!"

"Yes he is!"

Jinbei had enough. He grabbed Luffy by his shirt and pulled him closer. He started whispering as quietly as he could.

"Listen Luffy. We both don't know what's going on but he _is_ Ace. He obviously doesn't recognize us meaning his memories are gone. But that's only part of the matter. If the Marines find out that he's alive, then we'll be repeating the same war over and over again. So we need to keep him away from the entire world and information that will remind him of who he was!"

"But-"

"Look. This is Ace's second chance. We can't let it go to waste. We don't want things in the past to haunt him in his new life." Jinbei felt the younger flinch at the sound of 'second chance'

The Fishman let go of Luffy.

"So do you understand what we should do now, Luffy?" He looked down at the teen.

"…Second chance, huh…" Luffy fought the last of his tears from falling, "This is another chance for me as well…" A determined expression spread across his face.

"You're right! I won't let it go, Jinbei!"

"That's my boy!" Jinbei smiled along.

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><p>While the two were all back happy and excited, little Ace had returned back onto the crocodile, which he found a little more interesting than a man to fish conversation. He was trying to forget that strange conversation about 'Ace' by trying to cut out some meat from it. Unfortunately, he didn't have anything sharp on him.<p>

"Uh, what a pain."

Suddenly, a surprised shout rang out.

"Wha! Where did he go?"

Ace looked down. The guy who seemed to know him was looking around.

_Is he looking for me?_

Their eyes met. A large grin he had never seen before spread across Luffy.

"Ah, there you are!"

The next second Luffy was rocketing towards him. Ace's eyes widened.

"Wait! Stop! We'll crash!" Too late. Luffy bombed straight into Ace, making both of them fall off the crocodile. They hit the ground with a large thud.

"Ow…what was that for?" exclaimed Ace, rubbing his back.

"Shishishishi! I just wanted to say, sorry for mistaking you for someone else," Luffy laughed. He held out a hand.

"I'm Luffy!"

Ace reluctantly looked at the hand. He ended up shaking it in the end.

"Ace."

_Wasn't this guy crying a moment ago? Now he's all happy…What a crybaby._

His eyes turned towards the fisherman behind Luffy.

"So…are you two done with your private conversation?" he asked.

"Yes. Sorry for confusing you. We have mistaken you for someone else. Keep it in no mind."

"…Right…" _As if I'll forget it…_ Yet Ace decided to push away the strange conversation. _What's the point of thinking about it…It's about someone else anyway._

Luffy enthusiastically butted in without warning.

"Ace. Join me!"

"Huh?"

"What he means is if you are traveling alone, you could always tag along," clarified Jinbei.

"And why should I? You're strangers."

"This forest is a dangerous place you know."

"I can handle it. It's all part of getting stronger," retorted Ace.

"You couldn't even handle that crocodile," stated Luffy, picking his nose.

Ace's face flushed red.

"I don't want to hear that from a crybaby!"

Luffy's face scrunched up.

"What did you say?"

"You're a weak crybaby!"

"You're even weaker!"

Jinbei watched through the bickering in amusement. He could actually guess what their childhood was like by just seeing them fight. The bickering continued for a little longer until they ended up physically fighting. Luffy, having a large advantage, easily won.

"Ha! So who's weak now!" said Luffy.

"Damn it. That wasn't fair! A rematch!"

"Only if you promise to travel with me."

Ace clenched his fist.

"Fine."

_I'll crush that guy once I have the chance!_

"Yay!" Luffy cheered.

_I'll never lose you again, Ace._

And so, here begins a new journey that will bring shock and surprises to the entire world.

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><p><strong>please review and tell me about what the chapter felt like. <strong>


	2. To Where the Moby Dick is

My Big Bro, Now My Little Bro

**Yo! Thanks you all for reviewing and adding this fic to your lists! hope you enjoy the second chap.**

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><p><span>2. To Where the Moby Dick is<span>

Ace would stare at the humming teen and Fishman and back every now and then as they tracked back to...somewhere. Actually, he had no idea where the two strangers, introduced as Luffy and Jinbei, were taking him to. Perhaps their house or something? Speaking of which, Ace was _not_ proud of letting himself tag along some strangers he knew nothing of. Their full name, occupation, age… He didn't even know where he was right now, for God's sake! And he still had his big question he couldn't get it off his mind. Who was this 'Ace' from before? He had so many questions to ask, but he wasn't sure whether he could trust the two in front of him or not. He glanced at Jinbei, the one he would choose to be more…trustworthy of the two.

_Maybe I should just run away._

Then his eyes set back onto Luffy. He felt rage roam through him the same moment.

_No! Not until I beat that guy! _

Luffy, oblivious to the scorching stare he was receiving, chose the moment to spin around and give a huge smile. It made Ace even angrier, making him clench his fist.

_What's that big smile for? He's pissing me off!_

"Hey, Ace~!" called Luffy.

"What?" Ace replied, suppressing his anger.

"Are you hungry?"

"Not really."

As expected, his stomach started to growl as soon as he said that. Ace mentally cursed while Luffy let out a laugh. He even saw Jinbei's lips curl up a bit. He decided to blame it on Luffy's smile.

"Shut up! Stop smiling and laughing 'cause it pisses me off!" Ace snapped. It made Luffy tilt his head in confusion.

"What?! What's wrong about my smile? You were the one who said to stop being such a crybaby, remember? You said you hated them!" Ace blinked in surprise. Now he was the confused one. If his memories were correct, he hadn't talked to the older teen since he agreed to travel with them.

"That's true, but I never said such thing…" Ace trailed off when he saw a flash of panic in Luffy's eyes. It had been just for a short second, but it had been there, alright. Jinbei, who also noticed Luffy's small mistake, cut in.

"Now that's enough. Ace, when was the last time you've eaten?" he asked, hoping to keep him occupied with another conversation.

"Uh…I'm not really sure. I don't really remember anything from before."

"There's plenty of food to eat back at the camp, so just wait 'til we get there!" Luffy exclaimed, catching on.

"I can always go and catch my share of food," suggested Ace. He wasn't going to act like a child that needs care. He could manage his own food and all.

"No, you shouldn't. At least not until you earn yourself a decent weapon," said Jinbei. Ace couldn't help but sigh at the comment. It was true he was going to need a weapon to be able to catch those giant beasts. Maybe a pole or…

_A pole? _

Ace frowned at his random choice of weapon. He could have thought of a knife or something but a pole? That was just too random. Before he could think any further, his senses were alerted by the smell of…

"Food!" yelled Ace. His empty stomach growled along. Then he could see it. A huge pile of food.

"Shishishi! So much for catching your own food!" Luffy stretched his left arm around Ace's waist and the other at the pile of food. The action made Ace falter once more. For some reason, he wasn't surprised at seeing arms of rubber.

_Gomu gomu-wait, what?_

Unable to figure out what just came across his mind, Ace let Luffy rocket themselves towards the food pile. Ace shook his head.

_I must be tired. Let's forget it. Food comes first._

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><p>Rayleigh was inside his tent when he heard a small crash outside. Simply imagining an animal of some sort, he didn't bother heading out. However, his ears perked up when he heard a child's voice.<p>

"Can…Can I really eat this?!" Rayleigh could hear half excitement and half cautiousness.

"Yeah! It's not like you can hunt or anything," He recognized Luffy.

"I can so-uff!" it seemed to Rayleigh as if Luffy had stuffed food into the child's mouth.

"Just eat up!" A bunch of loud munching sounds followed, leaving Rayleigh thinking 'what is going on?' Rayleigh stepped outside and what he saw was an overwhelming happy Luffy and a familiar freckled kid busy eating.

Rayleigh frowned.

"Ac-" The old man was pushed back into the tent by Jinbei who came out of nowhere. Rayleigh gave Jinbei a confused look.

"Jinbei? Was that…?"

"Yes, it's Ace."

Rayleigh couldn't help himself from going blank. He had seen many unusual things from the sea but a supposedly dead walking around alive? That wasn't something that happened often.

"Care to explain?" he asked.

"I'm not sure what happened myself, but as you can see, Ace has been…reincarnated as a 10 year old. He seems to have no memories of his past, except for his first name."

"If the world knows this…"

"He is sure to be executed once more."

Rayleigh let out a deep sigh. How was this possible in the first place? No such thing had happened before. He looked back at Jinbei, who also looked troubled.

"How did Luffy react?"

"Well, he was the first to find him. When Ace couldn't recognize him, I simply told this was his second chance. So he's trying to act as if they had just met, although he has slips."

"What about Ace?"

"I can't really tell what he's thinking."

"I see…"

"What do you suggest we do?" Jinbei asked. Rayleigh stayed silent as he searched for an answer. After a long 5 minutes, he said his answer.

"Why don't we send him to the Whitebeard Pirates?"

"Is that a good idea?" asked Jinbei with wide eyes, "It might put Ace in more danger. We still don't know what will happen to the Whitebeard Pirates, now that _he's_ dead. Besides, Luffy isn't planning to be separated from Ace. Wouldn't it be better for both of them to stay on this island?"

"We still need to know the reason for Ace's revival. If we stay on this island we'll get nowhere. And who knows if Whitebeard himself is alive somewhere as well? If that really happens and somebody discovers him, it'll only be a matter of time until people search the entire world. There's no guarantee they won't reach this island."

Jinbei gasped at the thought. He realized Rayleigh, who probably had the most experience than anyone on this island, could be right. Jinbei couldn't help but feel despair. If this island wasn't safe, then where?

"Do not despair, Jinbei," said Rayleigh. "There will be a way. I doubt the Whitebeard Pirates will disperse soon enough. Even though Whitebeard is now dead, there aren't many people who can still stand up to his crew. It'll be one of the safest place we can think of at the moment."

"Then what about the Red Hair Pirates?"

"I guess that could be another option."

Suddenly, entrance of the tent flipped open, revealing Luffy with his hand tightly clutched on to his straw hat.

"No," he said. Both Jinbei and Rayleigh sent confused looks at the teen.

"What do you mean, Luffy?" asked Jinbei.

"I…I can't meet Shanks just yet."

"And why is that?" asked Rayleigh. He noticed Luffy's grip tighten on the hat.

"I haven't fulfilled our promise. I'm haven't gotten strong at all. I couldn't protect my nakama and… I couldn't…save…Ace…" Luffy wiped little drops of tears he had been holding back from when he first met the 'new' Ace, "I'm still weak! So until I'm strong enough…to protect Ace and everyone… I can't meet Shanks!"

The other two looked at Luffy's desperate attempts to hide his tears. Despite the gloomy situation, Rayleigh couldn't help but laugh.

"Hahaha!"Jinbei and Luffy stared at the laughing man.

"What's so funny?" asked Jinbei, "I don't think laughing is the right thing to do right now."

"Sorry about that," Rayleigh waved his hand apologetically. "Well, everything's settled then right? I'll send out letters to search whereabouts the Whitebeard Pirates are hiding. In the meanwhile, I will help Luffy train and make him stronger. I assume we will have enough time, as it won't be all easy to find the crew we're looking for. Luffy, you will become stronger and Ace will be safe. How does that sound?"

"That sounds good to me," nodded Jinbei.

Luffy simply knelt and bowed down to Rayleigh.

"Thank you!"

"No need to," the Dark King laughed. "So, where's your once big, now littlebrother?"

"Ah, he fell asleep in the middle of eating," Luffy smiled, not his usual shiny one, but a smaller soft one. "After all, even though he lost all his memories, he's still my big brother."

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><p><span>The next day…<span>

Ace woke up in an empty tent. He jumped up and looked around, not realizing where he was until he saw another blanket messily thrown into the side. Memories on how he met two strangers returned. Ace walked up and touched the tent floor where the owner of the blanket slept on. It was cold.

_Must have left a while ago._

He pushed open the tent and saw Jinbei eating beside the pile of food. Luffy, on the other hand, was nowhere to be seen. Ace walked up to the Fishman.

"Hi," he greeted, taking a sit beside him.

"Oh, youphr afuwaf," Jinbei replied.

"What?" Jinbei swallowed his mouthful of food.

"I was meant to say 'you're awake'," he clarified.

"Right," Ace also reached for the food without thinking, "So where's Luffy?" he bit into the tender meat he chose from the pile.

"He went training." At his words, Ace jumped up.

"I'm going after him." Unfortunately for him, he was caught by Jinbei before he could run after Luffy.

"Stop right there, Ace. You don't even know where he is."

"Let go! I can find my way through!"

"No you can't," said Jinbei. He lifted Ace up so that he was eye to eye with the frustrated boy.

"I can so!" Ace glared at Jinbei.

"Even if you manage to find him, you shouldn't interrupt them."

"I won't!" Ace pleaded.

"No, and that's final," Jinbei declared. He could hear gritting teeth and suppressed an amused smile. "However…Why don't you train with me?"

"What?"

"Like I said, you want to beat Luffy, right? I'll help you get stronger so you can achieve your goal."

"Really?" Ace felt shocks of excitement. This Fishman had just offered him an opportunity to become stronger! There was no way he would turn it down! As soon as Jinbei nodded, a grin spread across Ace for the first time.

"Thanks, Jinbei!"

Ace started to laugh in happiness, forgetting all the confusion he had, and also forgetting he was still dangling of the Fishman's grip.

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><p><span>5 months later…<span>

Luffy and Ace lay side to side, watching the stars twinkle in the night sky.

"Hey, Luffy?"

"Yeah?"

"Tomorrow's the day! I'm so excited!" exclaimed Ace. Luffy grinned along.

"Yeah! It's going to be your first time out in the sea!"

"I wonder what the Whitebeard Pirates will be like?"

"Well, I've only seen them once, but they were really awesome! I was too occupied to greet them properly, but…" Luffy's grin faded slightly as he remembered the war.

"But?"

"They had a Fishman like Jinbei and a blue flying chicken!" Luffy regained his smile and laughed.

"Woah, really?! A flying chicken?! That is so cool!"

"Well, anyways. I'll be sure to keep you from any danger, so no worries."

"Huh?" Ace pushed himself up and scowled, "I can protect myself just fine!"

"Shishishi! Sure you can."

"I can so! One day, I'm going to get even stronger until I beat you!" Ace proudly announced, puffing his chest out.

"So you're saying that you'll be able to beat me, your older brother who you pledged to be siblings with over a cup of sake?" Luffy asked.

"Yup!"

"I'd like to see you try!" Luffy tackled Ace to the ground, tickling him. Ace squirmed to get out of his grip, only to fail.

"S…Stop!..It…It tickles! Stop, Luffy!" Ace gasped. When Luffy didn't stop, Ace threw a punch at his face. Bam! Direct hit! Ace quickly scrambled up and sprinted towards their tent.

"Stupid Gomu!" he yelled behind his shoulder.

Luffy laughed and started to chase him. He was determined not to let Ace slip away this time.

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><p><strong>So Ace seems a little too OOC I guess. Sorry 'bout that. I didn't really want to make him all <em>mature<em> and all. I mean, he's supposed to be the _younger_ one now so yeah. Bear with me if you please. A 5 month timeskip and things have changed between the two, probably because I couldn't be bother writing stuff in between lol **


	3. Runaway

My Big Bro, Now My Little Bro

Hey! I'm back!

First of all, thanks to all my reviewers, followers and favorit-ers! (Dunno what I should call them) I hope you stay with me 'till the end of this fic.

Secondly, I have started a new One Piece fic. Yay. It's called **The Notebook The Freak and The Suicidal Orphan**. It would be nice if you could just drop by and have a read.

Finally, enjoy this chapter :P

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><p><span>3. Runaway<span>

Today was the big day for both Luffy and Ace. For Ace, it was going to be his first step out to the world. For Luffy, it was the beginning of a silent war between himself and the world. Luffy didn't feel too anxious, though. In fact, he was excited. He was stronger than before. He could do this. He could feel he wasn't the only one excited. Ace was trying hard not to bounce up and down like an immature kid.

"Excited?" asked Luffy as they headed to board the Kuza Pirate's ship. They-meaning Jinbei, Ace and himself- were planning to travel on a little boat until they reached their first island. However, Hancock had insisted that she should-no, _must_ escort them until they were out of Calm Belt. They had no choice but to accept her proposal. At least it was a better deal than going to the Whitebeard Pirates_ with_ her. That would have gained a lot of unwanted attention from both commoners and Marines and that was the last thing they needed.

"Yeah! I've been waiting for this day my whole life!" exclaimed Ace. "But really, is all this attention necessary?" Luffy couldn't help but laugh at Ace's comment. Despite staying on the island for quite some time, Ace was never all too open to the women on the island. After hearing the little boy was Luffy's brother, the women had all expected him to be made of rubber as well, which he wasn't. He had gone through some pain of being pulled, poked, hit, you name it and he hadn't liked it a single bit.

"It's your fault for not being made of rubber," teased Luffy.

"At least I'm not an _anchor_ like you."

"Whatever you say, rubber-wannabe."

"Hey! I would never want to be a rubber! It's lame! Fire sounds way cooler." It had turned out; the little Ace had some parts of the older Ace. During combat for instance, he had been performing the exact moves as the older one did, just less skillful and without fire. He had even named one of his favorite moves 'hiken'. The similarities were kind of frightening to the others.

Plus, he also had this 'fire is cooler than rubber' opinion.

"Jeez, stop saying that! It's annoying!" Luffy complained.

"I'll say it as many times as I want!"

Jinbei was already waiting for them when they got on the ship bickering. The Fishman sighed.

"Bickering again?" he asked, massaging his temples.

"I know! We'll ask Jinbei!" yelled Ace.

"Ask me what?"

"What's cooler? Rubber or fire?" Luffy asked. Jinbei blinked a few times before answering the grand question.

"Water."

"That's out of the question!" yelled the two Ds.

"Why?"

"Jinbei~What part of the question don't you understand?" whined Ace. He began to explain why fire was cooler and why water couldn't be included. Luffy just laughed. Ace might act like a grown up, but he still looked immature.

_I guess that's what I looked like to Ace. I have to say, it's pretty tiring but…_

Luffy looked up at the sky. All clear. Not a single cloud to be seen. It was a perfect day to set sail. He felt Ace tug on his shirt and turned back to him.

"What?"

"Jinbei agreed with me! Fire is better!"

"Jinbei! You traitor!" fumed Luffy.

"Your loss, Luffy!" Ace happily declared.

…_being an older brother is nice._

* * *

><p>"I'm hungry~!" Luffy whined.<p>

"And whose fault is that?" asked Jinbei accusingly.

"The random Sea King."

"No, damn it! It's you!" screamed Ace, whacking his brother on the head.

Half an hour ago…

"Bye, Hancock! Thanks for everything!" Luffy waved. Ace also waved along with him since she was pretty nice to him. Once they were out of sight, both of them flopped down on the little wooden boat they were given and reached for the pile of food also given from Hancock.

"Stop!" ordered Jinbei. Both Luffy and Ace looked at him.

"What's wrong Jinbei?" asked Ace, his hands inches from the food.

"Hancock gave us that food to eat when we're hungry!"

"We _are_ hungry," said the two Ds 'matter-of-factly'. Jinbei stopped himself from face palming. He should have known. These two were practically black holes.

"I mean," he clarified, "that's emergency food! Who knows when we'll reach the island? We can't just gobble it up right now!" Thankfully, Ace seemed to understand. After all, it was his first time out into the sea, it was normal to be cautious. But Luffy, on the other hand, just had to be stupid.

"We can fish." Jinbei couldn't help but question how this boy's mind worked.

"How? Do you have a fishing rod?" he asked.

"We can just beat it up when one comes out."

"Can you cook?"

"We can eat it raw." Ace decided to cut in. before Jinbei could think of a smart retort.

"Can you eat fish anyway, Jinbei? I mean you're a Fishman after all."

A three second silence followed. No one had ever questioned that, nor did they even think of it.

"You're a cannibal, Jinbei?!" cried Luffy.

"No! What I mean is we can't eat this right now! We don't even know when we'll come across a fish!"

"Okay, okay. If you say so…"

And so, nothing particularly special came up for the next 10 minutes. Maybe some bickering, teasing and fooling around, now and then, but nothing worth remembering. There was 'peace', until a Sea King came up to break it.

"What…What's that?!" asked Ace. It was his first time seeing something so big and weird.

"Food!" yelled Luffy. Before the other two could react, he jumped into the air. "And this is how you take care of it!" He stretched his foot high up.

"Gomu gomu no~" Jinbei noticed how the Sea King was looming over the boat. And to him, it seemed like Luffy was going to kick it. Vertically. Downwards. If he did that…then…that was bad news.

"Luffy, wait!" Jinbei frantically yelled. Too late.

"…Axe!" The straw hat's foot crashed down on the Sea King's head with full speed and power. The creature collapsed, luckily, right next to the boat. Jinbei sighed in relief, they were safe. Well at least he thought. The force of the fall created a tide, one big enough for a small boat to flip over. Which in that case, the one they were on.

"Jinbei! Do something!" cried Ace in panic.

"Move aside!" Jinbei took his stance facing the wave, "Gyojin Karate-"

Boom!

Luffy bulleted into Jinbei, making him lose balance and topple into the water. Ace stood watching the entire show, unable to do anything about the rushing water.

"Luffy! Behind you!" he yelled. Luffy turned, only to dread what he had just seen.

"Gya! Water! Help me, Ace! Jinbei! Where are you?"

"You idiot!"

Too bad the wave didn't show any mercy. The little story met its tragic end as the boat flipped over; causing Luffy and Ace follow Jinbei into the sea along with the enormous pile of food.

Back to the current time…

That was what happened. Ace knew Luffy was his older brother but sometimes he felt like _he_ should be the one looking after the rubber man. Though he would never speak it aloud, Luffy was indeed a nice older brother, but he was too reckless.

"Now what are we going to do?" he moaned. He too, was getting hungry by the minute.

"I miss all the meat," Luffy joined.

"You shut up!"

Honestly, he was really starting to think he should have been the older one.

* * *

><p>Fortunately, they managed to reach an island in another hour.<p>

"Yes!" exclaimed Ace.

"Food!" shouted Luffy.

They sprinted side by side to the nearest restaurant, leaving Jinbei to deal with the little boat.

"Young ones, these days…so reckless…"

Ace suddenly skidded to a stop. Up until now, his first priority was food, but something more important had just caught his eye. He walked back a few steps and stared at something in a shop. Luffy, who also stopped when he noticed Ace wasn't with him, reluctantly walked over.

"Ace~ The restaurant's that way, you know?"

"Luffy? Can…Can I buy that?" Ace asked, not taking his eyes off the window. Luffy joined to see what Ace was so willing to buy.

"Why? Something importa-!" Luffy's eyes widened. It turned out that the shop was a hat shop. And Ace was staring at the same trademark hat the older Ace used to have. Two smileys, one smiling and the other frowning, the side string with a medallion of a bull's skull, and even the string of red beads… The only difference was the color of the hat. It was black, unlike the original orange one.

"Are…are you sure you…you want that?" Luffy stuttered.

"Yeah! I need it!"

"…Is that so…"

After a few minutes, Luffy and Ace came out of the store. Ace happily had his new hat on.

"Thanks, Luffy! I love it!"

"…Well…It's Hancock's money anyway…" Luffy mumbled so quietly Ace didn't hear it. Luffy could feel his mind going blank.

_Could it be…that his memories…_

Luffy shook his head. He already knew there was some old Ace inside the new one.

_It should be obvious he had bought the hat in coincidence, not on his own accord._

Luffy couldn't help but feel slightly disappointed at the fact Ace wasn't regaining his memories.

"Luffy!" Ace called out again.

"What now?"

"I need this as well!" This time, it was a black elbow guard. Luffy let out a laugh when he saw it.

"What's so funny?" asked Ace, opening the door, frowning.

"Nothing~" Luffy replied as he followed Ace into the store.

_Coincidence, huh. Funny._

* * *

><p>Jinbei had shown a pretty funny reaction when he saw Luffy and Ace, with his hat and elbow guard, stuffing themselves with food in a pirate friendly restaurant.<p>

"_Ace?!" yelled Jinbei, his mouth wide open._

"_Youbr fibabli jeher, Bimbei. Whab towk yob su lob?" (You're finally here, Jinbei. What took you so long?)_

"_Ace…you…you…"_

"_Yob whab?" (You what?)_

"_You…look…different…" he trailed off, confused. Ace quickly swallowed the food he was munching on. _

"_Yeah! How does it look? I found them on my way here and Luffy bought them as a gift!"_

"_Yeah…You look great, Ace,"_

"_Thanks!" Ace continued to eat while Luffy snickered at the confused Fishman._

"So this island's a shopping mall?" repeated Luffy, munching on a piece of meat.

"Yes. You can buy anything you need, from clothes to ships," answered the waiter.

"Well, that's handy. We're going to need to stock up," said Ace.

"We might as well look for a bigger ship," suggested JInbei. "Since I'm done eating, I might as well head over to the harbor to take a look at some."

"I want to look around the island as well!"

"Well, you see," piped in the waiter, "since this island is pretty open to pirates, it might be a little dangerous for a kid to walk around on his own."

"Hey, I can handle myself just fine!" fumed Ace.

"Well, I guess you could hang around. We can meet up in the harbor in an hour or so," said Jinbei.

"I'll go with you."

"No, Luffy," said Ace, stopping him from getting up. "I want to explore on my own." Jinbei and Luffy exchanged glances, trying to decide if it was okay or not.

"Alright! I'll check out some other stuff then!" Luffy smiled at Ace. He knew well the feeling of wanting to do things alone sometimes.

"Thanks! See you guys in an hour!"

"Ace is strong. Nothing bad would happen to him," insure Jinbei. After all, it was him who had trained Ace for 5 months.

"Yeah, you're right."

What could truly happen in a mere hour anyway?

* * *

><p>Ace was enjoying himself to the full extent. There were so many interesting things to see on this island. After checking out the toy shop, he spotted a newspaper shop. The place was full of smell of ink. Ace wrinkled his nose at the unpleasant smell, yet decided to look around. Usually, ten year olds wouldn't be interested in newspapers, but Ace was willing to know more about the world. Living only in one island did make him pretty clueless on what was happening. He did spot some catchy headlines. His eyes then strayed onto the wanted posters. They all seemed pretty new to him but one caught his attention.<p>

**WANTED: **

**Monkey. D. Luffy **

**300,000,000 Beri**

Ace beamed at the poster. This was his Luffy and not some other one, alright. The smiling picture of him proved it. He put the poster (which was free) into his pocket. He was going to ask about his pirate life later.

_I can't wait until I'm old enough to become a pirate!_

He also tried to look for Jinbei's, only to fail. Deciding he had seen enough, Ace turned to leave. He would have left happily if only he hadn't seen another newspaper. Ace picked up the newspaper. His smile slowly turned to fear.

**MARINE'S VICTORY! THE GREAT WHITEBEARD AND FIRE FIST ACE DEAD**

"Wha…What is this?"

_"A…Ace…?" _

_"Who are you? How do you know my name?"_

_"Ace? You…You don't recognize me? It's me! Luffy! Your brother!" _

Suddenly, he could see thousands of headlines with the similar words.

**FIRE FIST ACE, SCHEDUELED TO BE EXECUTED AT MARINEFORD**

**THE PIRATE KING LIVES! FIRE FIST ACE, THE SON OF THE DEVIL**

**STRAW HAT LUFFY, REVEALED FIRE FIST'S YOUNGER BROTHER**

**THE LEGENDARY WHITEBEARD AND FIRE FIST ACE DIES**

Ace couldn't set his mind straight. He couldn't stop trembling. This couldn't be right. He…was alive. He possibly can't be this supposedly dead man. He couldn't even remember anything about it.

But…they just fitted in like a perfect puzzle.

"No…This can't be… Impossible…"

"Do you have a problem, kid?" Suddenly, a deep voice rang out from behind. Ace whipped around.

"Ahh!"

He didn't know why, but Ace found himself trying to back away. He didn't know this man, but his instincts were screaming at him to run. Ace stared at the tall man looming over him in fear. He didn't know him. He'd never met him. No, he didn't know this man. Ace shuddered in horror when a single name rang in his mind.

_Akainu._

* * *

><p><strong>Yeah. Was that alright? I'm goig to set this story before Luffy's bounty went up, btw<strong>


	4. A Rotten Memory of a Red Dog

My Big Bro, Now My Little Bro

**Yo! Sorry about not updating for ages! School's started and I was getting used to my school **

**Anyways...I never expected over 50 follwers and over 30 favorit-ers! thanks sooo much! **

**I don't think I really like this chap. Kinda boring I reckon. bear with me :(**

* * *

><p><span>4. A Rotten Memory of a Red Dog<span>

Fear. Ace felt fear. He stared wide eyed at the big man looming over him.

"A…kainu…"he trailed off. The said man raised his eyebrow hearing the name.

"You know me?" he asked, stepping one step forward. Ace back stepped in return, but never took his eyes off him.

"Akainu," he repeated softly. He felt anger. Akainu studied him, noticing something wasn't right. His eyes caught Ace's newly bought hat.

"Why does that hat look so familiar?" he said, eyes narrowing. He reached for it. Ace froze, staring at the big hand sliding towards him.

'_Even if I let someone else get away, I will never let the two of you go! Take a good look…' _

'_Hey! Wait!'_

'_Everyone stop Akainu!'_

'_If by tearing this body apart…I can delay you in the slightest, then I am content! I never intended to place value on my own life on the onset!'_

'_You said you wouldn't die! You promised!'_

'_Thank you… for loving me!'_

Slap. Akainu stared at his hand and back to Ace.

"Don't touch me!" warned Ace, eyes filled with hatred.

_Kill._

Now those eyes _did_ remind Akainu of someone. Someone he killed with his own hands. Someone dead. He knelt down to Ace's height. The two's eyes came into direct contact, and a mixture of different emotions rushed into Ace; anger, distress, grief, guilt, panic, rage, and disgust. His instincts told him to run, but he couldn't. His sudden desire was too overwhelming. His lust to kill was too overwhelming.

_Kill him._

Ace pulled out a dagger he had been hiding until now. It was a gift from the women in Amazon Lily. Its delicate design made it look like it was some sort of ornament and not some dangerous razor sharp weapon. Before Akainu could even blink, Ace stabbed the blade into the man's right eye. Unknown to Ace, Akainu was a devil fruit user. However, unknown to Akainu, the blade of the dagger had been made with sea stone. Ace pushed it in as deep as it could go in, ignoring the man's scream of agony. Yes, Akainu was in pain.

"Why, you little-!" Akainu clenched his fist and rammed it into his little attacker's ribs. The force sent Ace flying out to the streets. Ace landed rather ungracefully. He hadn't expected such a fast punch. His ribs ached but fortunately weren't broken. Ace quickly regained posture and glared at Akainu, who was slowly walking out the store with a heavily bleeding eye.

"You've attacked the wrong man, kid." Ace flinched when he saw his arms turned into hot red bubbling liquid.

_He'd seen that before._

Ace tightened his grip on his dagger.

_Kill._

"Die!" Ace charged at Akainu. The man sent a hot streak of magma right at Ace. Ace leaped and dodged. The second time, wasn't as lucky. The boiling liquid wrapped around his left arm. Ace felt immense pain.

"Ahhh!" He was burning. It hurt. It really hurt. Using the little moment of being off guard, Akainu rushed in and gave Ace's little body a powerful punch. Ace coughed out blood as he was sent crashing against the ground. Before he could get up, Akainu pinned him down by stomping down on his abdomen and magma started to flow over him.

"Gahhhh!" Ace cried. He wasn't burning, he was melting. His body was going down. He felt pathetic. If only he was strong enough to beat this guy. If only he was…

Tears flowed down his cheeks. He didn't want to die. Not yet.

"Luffy…help,,,"

His vision went black.

Noting his attacker was down, Akainu stopped his magma and got off him. He looked down questionably at the unconscious Ace.

"Strange…He looks exactly like Portgas. D. Ace. His items too…" his face crunched up in disgust, "Better kill him off," he declared, raising his fist for the final blow.

"Kyojin Karate!"

Akainu leaped back a second before a waterfall hit with tremendous force. He looked up and saw one of his wanted criminals entering the scene.

"Jinbei. So you survived."

"Only just, thanks to you, Akainu," growled Jinbei. He glanced at Ace, "He's still alive, Luffy."

Akainu tensed at the name. he narrowed his eyes once a furious Luffy came into sight.

"So you survived as well, Straw Hat."

"You damn-"

"Luffy! Remember what's more important to you! Revenge can wait!" Jinbei cut in. Luffy clenched his fist and gritted his teeth in fury. He really wanted to kill the Admiral, but Jinbei was right. Saving Ace was worth more than killing Akainu.

"…Fine. You're right." Luffy bent down and gently lifted his little brother up.

_Just hang on a little longer, Ace._

"Find a doctor once you arrive at the next island, got it?"

"Yeah. Thanks for everything, Jinbei. Don't die."

"I don't plan to."

Luffy slightly grinned at Jinbei's last statement and then started sprinting as fast as he could to the harbor their new ship was docked. Akainu, on the other hand, was determined not to let him go.

"Don't you dare!" His magma was blocked by Jinbei's water.

"Move!" he snarled.

"I shall do anything to stop you! Even if that means death!"

"I'll just have to walk over your dead body, then."

* * *

><p><em>Everything was red. Blood, fire, and magma. He was burning. His organs were gone. He could barely speak. 'Even though I was born with the blood of a demon…Thank you…for loving me'<em>

"Gasp!" Ace's eyes shot open to meet Luffy looking down at him in concern.

"Ace! You're up!" exclaimed Luffy in delight. Ace blinked a few times, trying to figure out the situation. He tried to get up, only to fail.

"Luffy…my body won't move," he said in panic. He saw Luffy look at him apologetically.

"All I could do was to bandage you up. You're severely injured, so you won't be able to move until we find a doctor on the next island."

"Why am I injured in the first place?" flashbacks of Akainu went through his mind, "Akainu!"

"He's not around," answered Luffy rather quickly, "Jinbei stayed behind to buy us time."

"What?! No! He'll die! We have to-"

"To keep on going, Ace. Jinbei's strong. He'll be fine," said Luffy. He gave Ace a forceful smile.

"But-"

"Believe in him."

"…Okay…"Ace trailed, sensing Luffy's seriousness, "So where are we?"

"We're on a small fishing boat we bought. Just hold on until we reach the next island. Don't die… You promised…" The last sentence was spoken in a mere whisper, but Ace didn't miss it. He recognized it, but didn't pursue any further. He had a big day, and he was tired.

"I think I might go back to sleep," he said.

"Yeah, you do that."

"What about you?"

"I'm not really ti…tired," replied Luffy while satisfying a huge yawn. Ace gave him an incredulous look.

"Oh, really?"

"Shishishi! Maybe I need some sleep as well!" laughed Luffy, "Call me if your body hurts or something," He headed towards his bed on the other side of the small cabin, but not before turning off the lights. Ace couldn't help but shiver in the dark. He wasn't cold or afraid of the dark. He was afraid he would see one of those…images and voices in his sleep.

"Luffy?" he called out.

"Yeah?"

"I think my bed's pretty big. So…can we…uh…sleep together?" Instead of an oral answer, he heard Luffy's footsteps getting louder. He couldn't help but feel relieved when he felt Luffy's warm body press onto his.

"I knew you were afraid of the dark!" Luffy teased. Although Ace couldn't see his face, he could guess what kind of expression his brother was making.

"I am not!"

"Sure thing."

"Stop it," he whined. He listened to Luffy's unique laugh quietly. He sounded so happy. Perhaps he should just keep his fears to himself. He really didn't want to bother his brother.

"Ace, are you asleep?" asked Luffy after a long moment of silence.

"Not yet."

"Can't sleep?"

"I just have a lot of stuff on my mind, that's all."

"Tell me about it," urged Luffy.

"I don't want to bother you," Ace denied.

"Na, I'm good. So tell me." Ace stayed silent, wondering where to start. After another minute, he opened his mouth.

"Luffy…Who am I?" he asked. Due to his heavily burnt body, he didn't notice Luffy tense up.

"You're my little brother, of course!"

"Right…"

"Why do you ask?"

"I just had all these weird hallucinations and hearing voices so…"

"Really? About what?"

"Akainu. I don't even know how I knew it was him in the first place. I also saw you and Jinbei and a lot of other people. I only had a glimpse but…you looked really upset."

"Huh…really?"

"Yeah…You even sounded broken. I've never really heard you sound like that before. Maybe except when we first met but the voices were worse."

"Is that so? Anything else?"

"…Who's Fire Fist Ace?"

"How do you know about him?"

"I visited a newspaper shop and saw a few headlines with that name."

"…He…He was a great guy. He's someone I really cared for."

"I see. We better sleep now. Good night, Luffy."

"Yeah. Night, Ace."

If it wasn't so dark, if Ace hadn't been injured and if he wasn't so tired, Ace would have noticed the strain, fakeness and agony in Luffy.

_He's someone who I failed to save when I could have._

* * *

><p>The two managed to reach their next island by noon thanks to nice weather. There was one obstacle however, and it was that the island was way bigger than the previous one, making it harder to find a doctor.<p>

"Doctor! Where are you?!" yelled Luffy, racing up and down the streets. Ace who was being carried in bridal style buried his face in his luckily unharmed hat.

"Can't you at least ask for directions?"

"It's easier this way."

"If you say so, but asking directions might be faster."

Well, worth a try. Hey, mister!" Luffy called out to a passerby, "Do you know where the doctor is?" Fortunately, the bystander happily told them the directions and they reached the doctor's clinic in a few minutes. However, when they entered, someone else caught Luffy's attention.

"You!"

On the other side of the island.

A seagull postman dropped a single letter in a lean man's hands. He easily opened the envelope and read what was written inside. Halfway through, it slid out of the man's shaking hands.

"You've gotta be kidding me, yoi."

* * *

><p><strong>see. that was really bad, I think. Better work on it harder next time. Thanks to you all for reading and I hope you review :)<strong>


	5. He's Back

My Big Bro, Now My Little Bro

**Heeeeeey. How long has it been? Nearly a year now, huh. Wow. **

**I've run out of excuses. lol **

**This one's a super short warm up ultra boring confusing i-have-no-idea-what-this-means this-is-dragging-on-and-on chapter so yup. Don't get your hopes up.**

**Starting from next chap, I'm planning to fasten things up a bit and also make it longer so I guess look forward...? I'm not certain with the 'look forward' part. Haha.**

**Luffy's OOC but that's part of the story and all so don't pay close attention to it. I mean, do look at it closely but...blah can't find the right description...oh well.**

**Disclaimer: I do not own One Piece. I do not own the cover art.**

**Holidays finally. I'll try to upload a few chaps now and then, but no promises.**

* * *

><p><span>5. He's Back<span>

"You! What are you doing here?" yelled Luffy. Ace flinched at the sudden volume up. Not trying to put any burden on his injuries, he turned his head ever so slightly to see who Luffy was talking to and what….a polar bear wearing a suit he saw.

"Hey, Luffy, what's the point of talking to a bear?" He knew Luffy was pretty idiotic, but seriously? This was quite extreme. On the other hand, the bear was just staring back at them with its mouth wide open with shock.

"What are you doing here?" asked Luffy once more.

"St…Straw hat! What are _you_-"

"Oi, Bepo. Who are you talking to?" Bepo was cut off once again by a rather cold voice of a man that came from behind a slightly opened door with the sign 'Staff Only'.

"It's him, Captain! Straw hat!" answered Bepo.

"…What kind of joke is that?" The man's footsteps neared towards them. "If you have nothing to do, go outside and…"

Trafalgar Law froze at his spot, eye to eye with the teen that he had healed only five or so months ago. He didn't expect him to be hanging out so causally so soon. Awkward silence followed as the two captains were locked on each other. Well, meeting Luffy here was surely a big surprise for Law, but what he was carrying in his arms was on a whole different level.

"No way…" he murmured, "Straw hat. Who are you…I mean _what_ are you carrying?"

"…Damn," Luffy muttered under his breath. Without giving Law any chance to carry on, Luffy walked over to him and pushed Ace into Law.

"My little brother's severely injured. Please heal him," he whispered. Law looked down at the two in silence.

"Yeah. Okay," he said before walking into another room, which was apparently the surgery room. Luffy followed and laid a very confused Ace, who had kept on missing the chance to ask questions, down on the bed. Ace looked up at him in panic.

"Luffy? I don't get it. How come there's a talking bear? Do you know that guy? What's going on?"

"It's all fine, Ace! You just concentrate on getting healed first, okay?" Luffy hid all his inner emotions and gave the little one his huge trademark beam. Meanwhile, Law inserted the sleeping drug.

"But…but…"

After ten or so seconds Ace hit the sack. Luffy let out a big sigh. _I screwed up…_

"So" demanded Law his eyes glued to his patient as he undid the bandages. Luffy scratched his head nervously. He had no idea where to start from.

"Well…I don't really know. He just suddenly appeared out of nowhere five months ago…with no memory of the past. He couldn't even remember me! I wasn't going to let him go again, you know? I wasn't going to let him die again. So I acted as the big brother this time. I tried hard not to let him know that he's supposed to be dead. But then we just had to meet Akainu as soon as we sail out. I think he found out about Ace, because he literally tried to kill Ace. Jinbei stayed behind to buy some time for me to escape with Ace. I don't know what happened to him since then. Now I'm here with more witnesses. And Ace seems so notice something's wrong. I'm really at loss now. I don't know what I should do… At this rate, Akainu's going to go after us and the whole world will know Ace's alive. I screwed up…" Luffy trailed off, digging his face into his palms.

Bepo, who was helping Law, gaped in surprise. He leaned towards Law.

"Captain, is that really Straw Hat? He's totally different," he whispered.

"Shut up, Bepo. I'm concentrating."

"Sorry…."

Only sounds of clanking metal tools and beeps from Ace's heart rang through the room. Luffy looked at his brother, covered in blood and burns.

"How is he? He's going to be okay, right?" he cautiously asked.

"Whoever bandaged him did a horrible job at it. Was it you?" Law asked back, never taking his eyes off Ace the entire time.

"Shishishi, yeah. I was in a hurry. That was the best I could do."

"He'll be alright. The one who needs treatment is you, Straw Hat. Did something happen to your head? You know, I can't heal mental problems."

"What do you mean?"

"Your outgoing personality and way of thinking changed 180 degrees. Since when were you so negative?"

"Oh…that…" Luffy looked around as if he was trying to find some good excuse from the wall, "…I can't help it, you know? I'm the big brother after all."

"That's something, coming from you," Law commented sarcastically. He paused from his work and finally gave a quick glance at Luffy. From the eyes of the young doctor, it was Luffy who was scarred all over. Sure, Ace had near fatal injuries, but at least they were one's that could be healed. The ones Luffy had were going to go on forever. Before he could even get over his big brother's death, another one appeared before his eyes. And that meant tremendous responsibility for Luffy, especially in such a short time after the war. Death and secrets. If Law was correct, Luffy had been acting as a big brother, with the truth hidden for nearly half a year now. Oppressing all his true feelings, acting as a reliable big brother, but not able to go back as the playful little brother he wanted to return to. Even that vivacious Straw Hat Luffy was bound to break.

"About this little Ace of yours, he's obviously going to drag trouble with him wherever he goes. It's only natural for him to. Don't expect to get through his without a damn big battle. So you better get hold of yourself or else you'll really lose him this time. Don't be afraid of the future. Like how you were back then. You don't have to overdo it like right now. Just get a proper grip."

I glanced back at Luffy once more. Sullen, dead fish eyes.

…_Or maybe it's too late for you to turn back._

* * *

><p><span>In the Middle of the Sea<span>

"Heeeeeey, Maaaarrrrcccoooooo~!"

"What, yoi."

"Why did we have to leave so fast? It was so nice and lively there. I even saw a talking polar bear there. I wanted to have chat with him."

"…Read it and announce it to the rest, yoi."

"Hmm? What's this? A letter? From who?"

"Rayleigh. I'm going to check around so don't do anything rash, okay, yoi?"

Without listening for a reply, Marco flew out into the air. He needed time to think.

"_Dear Marco and the rest of the Whitebeard Pirates,_

_Greetings all. _

_You have my deepest condolences. _

_Your captain was truly a great man with honor that can't be expressed in words._

_We will have to reminisce face to face some day. _

_Please feel free to visit me sometime. _

_However, this letter cannot be too long, I'm afraid, and I shall get to my point immediately. _

_Ace is back._

_As a 10 year old with no memories of his past, that is._

_I am still searching on how something extraordinary like this could happen._

_Quite obviously, this little Ace will be in danger sooner or later. _

_So I have sent Ace along with Luffy and Jinbei in search for you, where I think it would be the safest place for the time being. _

_I have no clue when this letter will reach you, even though I'll be using express delivery service. _

_Once you get a hold of this letter, it would be great if you search for the three as well. _

_That is all. _

_Yours sincerely,_

_Silvers Rayleigh. "_

Now what was he supposed to do after reading that? Ace alive? No way. Then again, Rayleigh wouldn't lie on such a serious subject like that. How were they supposed to find this group of three people on this vast sea? Marco sighed. Maybe he should have thought some more on the matter on ground instead of making haste and heading out to god-knows-where. What if they had been on the very same island? _Well, how high are the chances of that. _Marco shook it off.

Suddenly, something caught his eyes. He squinted slightly to get a better view on the object drifting in the water. A huge, bloody fish, it was. It had clothes on. _Now that's a bit odd._ Marco flew down and hovered just a few meters above.

"…Jinbei?"

* * *

><p>"So what's the plan, Straw Hat?"<p>

"I'm going to look for the Whitebeard Pirates. It's probably safe there."

"Is that so? Well since Bepo and I are traveling separately from the rest of the crew and have plenty of time to kill, we could give you a hand with that."

"Huh? Really?" Luffy exclaimed.

"For real, Captain?" cried Bepo at the same time.

"Yes. It's not a problem for you, right?"

"Na~ Thanks Tra-guy! I really owe you a lot!"

"You can payback later in the future," said Law, giving a little smirk. "We'll have to move out tonight, then."

"Wait, but Ace-"

"Ace will die if he stays here. And so will you and I. Akainu's coming towards this island."

* * *

><p><strong>Ah~ That is really a terrible chapter. I'm gonna sleep. Bye bye. <strong>


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